21st Century Designers

The recent death of Fashion Genius Yves Saint Laurent is a terrible loss for the world of upscale clothing. He belonged with Christian Dior and Coco Chanel to this exclusive group of designers who created the style of the 20th century. I say style and not trend or fashion because they were way above fashion. They created clothes that were not only fashionable and contemporary but most of all they were elegant which is a timeless quality.

So how is that different from what new designers do today? "Old fashion" designers like YSL tailored clothes for women which were inspired by men's clothes. Today, new designers tend to do the contrary: they dress men like women. It is not a bad thing when it's done tastefully with greater attention to details. But unfortunately some recent collections would make men look more like cheap whores than gentlemen. It often seems like fashion designers forget about style when they're looking for new trends.

Another unfortunate development is Fashion Business. Fashion brands have come from small boutiques to international corporations. Not so long ago quality and looks used to justify expensive prices for clothes. Today expensive prices justify it all and quality is not always there. YSL used to care about his clients and their needs. He also cared about the middle class woman whose clothes would be inspired from what he created a few years before. Hence his admiration for blue jeans which are both practical and stylish. Today egocentrism starts replacing the pleasure of making women look beautiful. The snobbery of wearing expensive designer clothes is replacing the pleasure of looking naturally elegant.

Well, I'm surely being over dramatic and judgmental. That is why I am going to start a column on Human Times where I will make the portrait of  21st century Designers and show what they're bringing to their craft.